The Love of my Life, Ripped from me Forever
by X. The Marauders .X
Summary: prequal to Dying on the Inside. pretty sad, rated T cuz im still paranoid. MurXOC all my stuff is depressing, but this is also cute. read if u wish, reveiw me if u like it


**This story takes place while Murtagh and Eragon are racing to find the Varden, in book one, with the Urgals hot on their tail.**

**Disclaimer: i am not the author of Eragon. i wish i was though. also you will notice that i have used lines from the movie, i am also not the director or producer of the movie.**

**ok, so i talked to Murtagh and Slain. there were all on board. Eragon wasnt too happi, but i think he has a crush on Salin (shhh! dont tell Murtagh!!) so he agreed, so here we are**

**reveiw me after u read...? even flames are ok... pretty much...**

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Murtagh rolled over in his makeshift bed.

"Slain?" when she didn't answer, Murtagh got worried. "Slain!" She must have been taken by Galbatorix's men! "Oh no no no no no!" He grabbed his sword and ran down to the river: that must have been the way they took her. Murtagh crashed through the undergrowth, not caring who could here him, as he approached the river he grew more cautious. He pulled the walls of his mind closer to him and slowly made his way down to the bank. He could hear Slain's voice, singing softly.

Slain was crouched on the opposite the river bank. It looked like she was trying to converse with the fish. She was alone. And unharmed. As if she sensed his arrival, which she probably did, Slain looked up at Murtagh.

"You worried me." He stated.

"You, of all people, should know that I can take care of myself." She replied. A smile easily made its way onto her face. A small answering smile crept to Murtagh's lips.

"Slain - " Slain put a finger to her lips.

"Uh –Uh, Shh." She smiled again. With all the grace and ease of an elf she leapt from rock to rock in absolute silence, her bare feet making no noise as she moved, and never making so much as a ripple in the water. When she reached the same side of the river as he, Murtagh stepped forward to wrap her in his arms, but Slain turned to face the river.

"Oh." She said, looking crest fallen. Murtagh was confused.

"You scared away my friends." She said.

"What?" Murtagh was still confused by Slain.

"My fish friends, we having such a good talk, but you stepped forward and they got scared and swam away."

"I'm sorry?" Murtagh was confused by, but still adored Slain's carefree nature and love of everything around her.

"It's ok. I can talk to them another day." Slain stepped forward again and allowed Murtagh to wrap her in a hug. "Good Morning." She said. Slain stood up on her toes and pressed her lips gently to Murtagh's. He placed one hand on the back of her head, securing her to him. He loved her more than anything, he would do anything for her. Slain pulled away from him to breathe. He leaned down so that their foreheads touched.

"It is now."

Slain took his hand and lead him back to camp. Murtagh, realized, in his haste earlier, he had not noticed Eragon and Saphira were gone.

"Where are Eragon and Saphira?" Murtagh asked. Slain closed her eyes.

"They have gone to scour the mountains, Saphira is hunting, and Eragon is with her, keeping watch." Murtagh nodded. He put all their gear in their packs, and removed all the evidence of their night from the campsite.

The campsite was suddenly thrown into shadow, Murtagh looked up in apprehension, but it was merely Eragon and Saphira. Saphira landed, and Eragon slid off her.

"The Urgals are making fast progress, we'll have to hurry to get to the Varden in time, are you sure you know where you are going?" Eragon still doubted him, and still had the annoying thought in his head that he, Murtagh, the son of Morzan, the Vardens greatest enemy beside Galbatorix himself, was just going to waltz into the Varden. Well he had another thing coming.

"I have told you, dragon rider, I am not going to the Varden with you. I will take you as far as I can and then I am going elsewhere with Slain." Eragon shot Slain a pleading glance.

"Slain, tell him how childish he is being, the Varden can protect him from Galbatorix."

"I am sorry, dragon rider. Murtagh does what he wants, and I go with Murtagh. But that is neither here nor there at the moment. We must hurry, the elf is getting worse."

Eragon gave a tight nod, and scrambled back onto Saphira. Murtagh mounted Tornac and pulled Slain on behind him. Tornac set off at a gallop, and, after two more days of traveling, they arrived at their destination.

"Please tell me this looks something like your vision!" Murtagh exclaimed. Eragon nodded. Urgals were closing in. Murtagh now had no choice but to go into the Varden, and he wasn't happy about it.

"Come on!" Eragon jumped into the pool, and swam towards the waterfall. Slain slid off the horse, and gave the reigns to Murtagh.

"Life or death?" she asked him, her playful nature gone in the seriousness of the situation.

"Some life." He said before taking her hand in one of his, and the horse's reigns in the other and following Eragon. He swam under the waterfall and when he surfaced he was met the half a dozen spears pointed at him and a guilty looking Eragon. Him and Slain were hauled up and into a central cave, where a dark-skinned man stood.

"I am Ajihad, leader of the Varden. Which one of you is the rider?" he asked: his voice authoritive.

Eragon stepped forward, "I Am." he stated.

"Very well" said Ajihad. "Call your beast inside."

"If it attacks, you will die first." Said a dwarf. Slain gave a small laugh.

"You find something amusing, girl?" asked the now enraged dwarf.

"Of course not, King Hrothgar." She said, her tone grave. Hrothgar looked stunned. He chose not to comment.

Saphira flew into the inner cave, and the rock smoothed over to form an impenetrable wall.

While Eragon explained to Ajihad about Arya, Murtagh stayed quiet. He knew what would happen as soon as his secret was found out, and he had no desire to initiate the event.

As Sahpira took Arya into the innermost city of the Varden, Ajihad seemed to notice Murtagh. However, he was distracted by another dwarf bringing him news of the Urgals.

"Time is short." He said. "And I must know if your with us?" Eragon looked at Murtagh, and turned back to Ajihad.

"We're with you." Ajihad let out a sigh of relief, and turned his attention back to Murtagh. Without warning, Ajihad clicked his fingers,

"Seize him!" He commanded. Two dwarfs and two humans grabbed hold of Murtagh. He had known this was going to happen.

"Let go of me!" He exclaimed. To Murtagh's surprise, Eragon stood in front of him.

"He's with me. He saved my life." He said.

"He is the son of Morzan, the traitor." Ajihad said, in his deep voice. Eragon took a step away from Murtagh.

"Is it true?" He asked. Murtagh's eyes flicked from Ajihad to Eragon.

"A son doesn't choose his father." Eragon looked at him with contempt.

"This was the only thing he ever gave me," Murtagh pulled off his shirt to revel a long scar across his back. "I hated that man until the day he died."

"Enough!" Cried Ajihad. "Take him away and lock him up, if he tries to escape, kill him!"

"No! Slain! Let go of me! Slain!" When Murtagh's cries could no longer be heard, Ajihad looked at Slain.

"Who are you girl?" He asked.

"I'm with him." Slain pointed in the direction that Murtagh had been dragged off.

"And me." Interceded Eragon. Before Ajihad could respond, two figures, twins, walked out of the gloom of another cave.

"Perhaps we should inspect their minds, Leader." One of them said.

"Indeed." Said the other.

"I wouldn't want to do that if I were you." Said Slain, unexpectedly, her lips curling into a smirk. One of the twins made a gesture as if to say "please explain". But Slain shook her head.

"There isn't time. You will have to take me at my word. Its either that or you throw me out and I will have no choice but to break down your doors."

"I'd… take her on her word." Eragon had never seen small, shy, docile, polite, sweet Slain act like this before, and it scared him.

Ajihad gave a slight nod, but looked at Slain with distrust. The twins looked at each other in fury.

The Varden began to prepare for war. Eragon was given training, Arya was in perfect health again and Saphira was being outfitted for the coming battle.

But no one paid any attention to Slain. A small figure that sat outside Murtagh's cell, day and night, the pair just talking in hushed tones.

The battle came and went. Many Urgals and soldiers alike trying to kill the small helpless-looking figure that sat outside a cell. None succeeded. As they would near her, she would look up, their step would falter and then they would just – drop to the ground. Dead.

Murtagh escaped his cell and caved a path of destruction on the enemy forces around him. No one faced him and lived.

After the battle, even Ajihad and the twins had to agree that Murtagh had proved his allegiance to the Varden, many times over. He even went with Ajihad to track down the Urgals and soldiers that got away.

Murtagh was returning to the City-Under-The-Mountains. He could not wait to see Slain again. To hold her and tell her he loved her.

Slain was standing at the edge of the battlefield. Eragon standing beside her, and Arya was on Eragon's other side. She saw Murtagh approach. Her heart leapt. Soon she would be in his arms.

Then, everything was like a nightmare. A dozen Urgals sprang out of the tunnel below the city, Slain ran to the party, but Ajihad was already dead, with five slain Urgals around him. Murtagh was gone. She never got to say good bye…

Slain began to die on the inside. She told Eragon her greatest secret.

"I am a powerful spell caster. More powerful then any of you dragon riders. I am of the Gray Folk. We are the oldest race in Alagaesia, older and more powerful. You cannot tell a soul. Swear it in the ancient language."

Eragon swore it.

Slain never stopped loving Murtagh. Because she knew he was alive. She knew one day, she would save him.

Far away in a small cell in the bowels of Galbatorix's fortress, Murtagh sat.

"Take the egg from me! Hold it! Make it hatch for you!" Galbatorix screamed at him. Murtagh shook his head. He was weary and in pain. He wished he could hold Slain's hand one more time before he died, kiss her forehead one more time, tell her he loved her one more time.

"Then you leave me no choice, insolent boy!" Suddenly Murtagh felt pain. Every nerve in his body was on fire, he wanted to die, to slip away, but he couldn't.

"I can make it stop. Just hold out your hands boy." Galbatorix whispered, in a deadly voice. Murtagh screamed. He would do anything to make it stop. Slowly he held out his hands, and Galbatorix placed the unhatched egg in them. The pain stopped. But to Murtagh's horror, cracks spread all over the egg like spider webs. It was hatching.

"Yes!" Galbatorix hissed. "Now we have some arrangements to make…"

Murtagh's last sane thought, before Galbatorix corrupted him, near beyond repair, was of Slain…

"_The love of my life, ripped from me forever."_

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**O.k, so i no that this was no where as good as Dying on the Inside... if u think i should rewrite it, tell me... i was forced by Padfoot and Prongs to post this XD... but i like the begining and the very end. What do u think? you know, im becoming very attached to Slain, shes one awesome chick. so if you read any other of my stories with Slain in them and it does not say that they are related to these stories, plz dnt get confused.**

**reveiw?**

**Moony out.**


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